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Abstract:

An apparatus and a method for operating antennas. A terminal includes a
plurality of short range wireless communication antennas, each antenna
disposed on different surface or in a vicinity of the different surface
of the terminal, and a short range wireless communication control module
configured to control to select at least one of the plurality of short
range wireless communication antennas.

Claims:

1. A terminal, comprising: a plurality of short range wireless
communication antennas, each antenna disposed on a different surface or
in a vicinity of the different surface of the terminal; a short range
wireless communication control module configured to control to select at
least one of the plurality of short range wireless communication
antennas; and a switch configured to switch antennas when a communication
connection has been failed for N times of an operation cycle wherein N is
a positive integer.

2. The terminal of claim 1, wherein the short range wireless
communication control module is a near field communication (NFC) control
module, and an one time operation cycle is 333 milliseconds corresponding
to an NFC one time polling cycle.

3. The terminal of claim 1, further comprising a switching module that
forms an integrated antenna by selectively connecting at least two
antennas of the plurality of short range wireless communication antennas
and that performs impedance matching and frequency transition of the
antennas, wherein the short range wireless communication control module
supplies relatively high power, compared when operating one short range
wireless communication antenna in order to support efficiency of the
integrated antenna.

4. The terminal of claim 1, wherein the short range wireless
communication control module forms a short range wireless communication
channel based on an antenna of a success time point, when the
communication connection attempt succeeds.

5. The terminal of claim 1, wherein the short range wireless
communication control module is configured to provide a plurality of mode
selections to attempt a communication connection via a specific short
range wireless communication antennas according to one of a plurality of
mode selections, wherein a manual mode attempts communication connection
via manually selected antenna, and an automatic mode attempts
communication connection via sequentially selected antenna after a
predetermined time period has elapsed.

6. A terminal comprising an antenna control system, comprising: a
plurality of short range wireless communication antennas, each antenna
disposed on a different surface or in a vicinity of the different surface
of the terminal; a switch configured to switch antennas when a
communication connection has been failed for N times of operation cycles;
an input unit configured to select one of a manual mode and an automatic
mode for selecting at least one of a plurality of short range wireless
communication antennas; and a short range wireless communication control
module configured to select the at least one of a plurality of short
range wireless communication antennas according to the selected mode,
wherein the short range wireless communication control module is
configured to sequentially select the at least one of the plurality of
short range wireless communication antennas according to the automatic
mode, when connection has been failed for N times of a data transmission
and reception operation cycle;

7. The terminal of claim 6, wherein the short range wireless
communication control module is an NFC control module, and a unit time of
the operation cycle is 333 milliseconds corresponding to an NFC one time
polling cycle.

8. The terminal of claim 6, wherein the plurality of short range wireless
communication antennas are disposed in at least two portions of an upper
end portion of a front surface, a lower end portion of a front surface,
an upper end portion of a rear surface, a lower end portion of a rear
surface, an upper end portion of a side surface, and a lower end portion
of a side surface of the terminal.

9. The terminal of claim 6, wherein when a plurality of short range
wireless communication antennas are operated, the short range wireless
communication control module supplies higher power than when the one
short range wireless communication antenna is operated.

10. The terminal of claim 6, further comprising a display unit configured
to display a complex mode set to operate an automatic mode after
operating a manual mode for a predetermined time period, wherein the
short range wireless communication control module controls to attempt a
communication connection based on a specific antenna of the plurality of
short range wireless communication antennas according to preset schedule
information or an input signal, when the complex mode is selected and to
perform an automatic communication connection attempt according to
selection of an automatic mode after a predetermined time period has
elapsed.

11. The terminal of claim 6, further comprising a display unit configured
to provide at least one screen of: a mode selection screen that can
select one of the manual mode or the automatic mode; an antenna selection
screen that can select one of the plurality of short range wireless
communication antennas according to selection of the manual mode; an
operation screen of an antenna that presently attempts a communication
connection among the plurality of short range wireless communication
antennas according to selection of the automatic mode; and a notification
screen that either represents a success of a communication connection
attempt or a failure of a communication connection.

12. The terminal of claim 11, wherein the mode selection screen comprises
a mode item that converts to an automatic mode after operating a manual
mode for a predetermined time period.

13. The terminal of claim 11, wherein the antenna selection screen
further comprises an item that configured to select an integrated antenna
in which at least two antennas are integrated.

14. A method of controlling an antenna, the method comprising: selecting
at least one of a plurality of short range wireless communication
antennas, each antenna disposed on different surface or in a vicinity of
the different surface of the terminal; and attempting a communication
connection for N times of a data transmission and reception operation
cycle via the selected antenna wherein the N is a positive integer.

15. The method of claim 14, wherein the short range wireless
communication control module is an NFC control module, and a one time
operation cycle is 333 milliseconds corresponding to an NFC one time
polling cycle.

16. The method of claim 14, further comprising: forming an integrated
antenna by selectively connecting at least two antennas of the plurality
of short range wireless communication antennas and performing impedance
matching and frequency transition of the antennas; and supplying higher
power than power for one short range wireless communication antenna
operation.

17. The method of claim 14, further comprising: attempting a
communication connection based on a specific antenna of the plurality of
short range wireless communication antennas according to preset schedule
information or an input signal before performing the automatic mode;
performing, if a communication connection is failed after a predetermined
time period has elapsed, the automatic mode; and forming, if a
communication connection is succeeded, a short range wireless
communication channel based on a specific antenna.

18. The method of claim 14, further comprising at least one process of:
displaying a mode selection screen that can select one of the manual mode
or the automatic mode; displaying an antenna selection screen that can
select one of the plurality of short range wireless communication
antennas according to selection of the manual mode; displaying an
operation screen of an antenna that presently attempts a communication
connection among the plurality of short range wireless communication
antennas according to selection of the automatic mode; displaying a
notification screen that either represents a success of a communication
connection attempt or a failure of a communication connection.

19. The method of claim 18, further comprising at least one process of:
displaying a mode item that converts to an automatic mode after operating
a manual mode for a predetermined time period on the mode selection
screen; and displaying an item that configured to select an integrated
antenna in which at least two antennas are integrated on the antenna
selection screen.

20. The method of claim 14, wherein the plurality of short range wireless
communication antennas are disposed in at least two portions of an upper
end portion of a front surface, a lower end portion of a front surface,
an upper end portion of a rear surface, a lower end portion of a rear
surface, an upper end portion of a side surface, and a lower end portion
of a side surface of the terminal.

Description:

CROSS-REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATION(S) AND CLAIM OF PRIORITY

[0001] The present application is related to and claims the benefit under
35 U.S.C. §119(a) of a Korean patent application No. 10-2012-0072017
filed on Jul. 3, 2012 in the Korean Intellectual Property Office, the
entire disclosure of which is hereby incorporated by reference.

TECHNICAL FIELD OF THE DISCLOSURE

[0002] The present disclosure relates to antenna control, and more
particularly, to an antenna control system, a terminal including the
same, and a method of controlling an antenna that can more reliably form
a communication channel of a short range wireless communication module.

BACKGROUND OF THE DISCLOSURE

[0003] Due to a small size to carry while providing a specific user
function, mobile terminals has been spotlighted in industrial and living
fields. Nowadays, mobile terminals integrally providing various user
applications are available. Such a mobile terminal is equipped with a
screen to display the user applications to a user.

[0004] When performing a communication function of the mobile terminal,
the mobile terminal communicates with the base stations. In order to
provide a communication service without interruption, communication
technology designs a system such that the coverages of each of a
plurality of base stations may be overlapped and the communication
continuity is guaranteed during hand off.

SUMMARY

[0005] To address the above-discussed deficiencies of the prior art, it is
a primary object to provide an antenna control system, a terminal
including the same, and a method of controlling an antenna that can more
reliably form a short range wireless communication channel.

[0006] In accordance with an aspect of the present disclosure, a terminal
includes a plurality of short range wireless communication antennas
disposed on or in vicinities of a plurality of surfaces of the terminal.
A short range wireless communication control module sequentially selects
the plurality of short range wireless communication antennas, but
automatically selecting in an unit of N times (N is a positive integer)
of a data transmission and reception operation cycle for a communication
connection attempt defined in short range wireless communication and
controlling to perform a communication connection attempt based on an
automatically selected antenna. A switch switches to select one antenna,
except for the automatically selected antenna, when a communication
connection is failed based on a presently selected antenna in a unit of
the N time operation cycles.

[0007] In accordance with another aspect of the present disclosure, a
method of controlling an antenna includes selecting one of a plurality of
short range wireless communication antennas. The method performs a manual
mode of attempting a communication connection using the selected antenna
or performing an automatic mode of attempting a communication connection
in a unit of the N time (N is a positive integer) cycles of a data
transmission and reception operation cycle defined in short range
wireless communication using the selected antenna, automatically
selecting, if the communication connection is failed, another antenna in
a unit of the N time cycles, and performing a communication connection
attempt based on the automatically selected antenna.

[0008] In accordance with another aspect of the present disclosure, a
terminal includes a plurality of short range wireless communication
antennas, each antenna disposed on different surface or in a vicinity of
the different surface of the terminal. A switch is configured to switch
antennas when a communication connection has been failed for N times of
operation cycles. An input unit is configured to select one of a manual
mode and an automatic mode for selecting at least one of a plurality of
short range wireless communication antennas. A short range wireless
communication control module is configured to select the at least one of
a plurality of short range wireless communication antennas according to
the selected mode.

[0009] An antenna control system includes a plurality of short range
wireless communication antennas and a short range wireless communication
control module for controlling to attempt a communication connection
based on a designated antenna of the plurality of short range wireless
communication antennas according to a manual mode and to sequentially
select the plurality of short range wireless communication antennas
according to an automatic mode, but to automatically select at a time
point of N times (N is a positive integer) of a data transmission and
reception operation cycle defined in short range wireless communication
and to perform a communication connection attempt based on an
automatically selected antenna, a switch for switching to select another
antenna when a communication connection is failed based on an antenna
selected in a unit of the N time operation cycles; an input unit for
generating an input signal for setting one of the manual mode and the
automatic mode, and a controller for controlling the mode setting
according to an input signal of the input unit.

[0010] Before undertaking the DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE DISCLOSURE
below, it may be advantageous to set forth definitions of certain words
and phrases used throughout this patent document: the terms "include" and
"comprise," as well as derivatives thereof, mean inclusion without
limitation; the term "or," is inclusive, meaning and/or; the phrases
"associated with" and "associated therewith," as well as derivatives
thereof, may mean to include, be included within, interconnect with,
contain, be contained within, connect to or with, couple to or with, be
communicable with, cooperate with, interleave, juxtapose, be proximate
to, be bound to or with, have, have a property of, or the like; and the
term "controller" means any device, system or part thereof that controls
at least one operation, such a device may be implemented in hardware,
firmware or software, or some combination of at least two of the same. It
should be noted that the functionality associated with any particular
controller may be centralized or distributed, whether locally or
remotely. Definitions for certain words and phrases are provided
throughout this patent document, those of ordinary skill in the art
should understand that in many, if not most instances, such definitions
apply to prior, as well as future uses of such defined words and phrases.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

[0011] For a more complete understanding of the present disclosure and its
advantages, reference is now made to the following description taken in
conjunction with the accompanying drawings, in which like reference
numerals represent like parts:

[0012] FIG. 1 is a block diagram illustrating a configuration of a
terminal including an antenna control system according to an embodiment
of the present disclosure;

[0013] FIG. 2 is a perspective view illustrating a disposition of an
antenna module in an antenna control system according to an embodiment of
the present disclosure;

[0014] FIG. 3 is a block diagram illustrating a configuration of an
antenna control system according to another embodiment the present
disclosure;

[0015]FIG. 4 is a flowchart illustrating a method of controlling an
antenna according to an embodiment of the present disclosure; and

[0016]FIG. 5 is a diagram illustrating an antenna control related screen
interface output through the terminal of FIG. 1.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION

[0017] FIGS. 1 through 5, discussed below, and the various embodiments
used to describe the principles of the present disclosure in this patent
document are by way of illustration only and should not be construed in
any way to limit the scope of the disclosure. Those skilled in the art
will understand that the principles of the present disclosure may be
implemented in any suitably arranged wireless technologies. Hereinafter,
exemplary embodiments of the present disclosure are described in detail
with reference to the accompanying drawings. The same reference numbers
are used throughout the drawings to refer to the same or like parts. The
views in the drawings are schematic views only, and are not intended to
be to scale or correctly proportioned. Detailed descriptions of
well-known functions and structures incorporated herein may be omitted to
avoid obscuring the subject matter of the present disclosure.

[0018] While the present disclosure may be embodied in many different
forms, specific embodiments of the present disclosure are shown in
drawings and are described herein in detail, with the understanding that
the present disclosure is to be considered as an exemplification of the
principles of the disclosure and is not intended to limit the disclosure
to the specific embodiments illustrated.

[0019] FIG. 1 is a high-level block diagram illustrating a configuration
of a terminal for supporting a short range wireless communication
according to an embodiment of the present disclosure.

[0020] Referring to FIG. 1, a terminal 100 according to the present
exemplary embodiment includes a radio frequency (RF) unit 110, input unit
120, audio processor 130, display unit 140, storage unit 150, and
controller 160 and can include an antenna module including a short range
wireless communication control module, a switch, and a plurality of short
range wireless communication antenna for supporting short range wireless
communication. Here, a near field communication (NFC) control module 170
is a module for supporting NFC communication and can be an example of a
short range wireless communication module.

[0021] In the terminal 100 with such a configuration, when a control
signal for operating a short range wireless communication module is
transmitted to the NFC control module 170, the NFC control module 170
controls to form a communication channel via a specific short range
communication antenna located in an antenna module 200 according to
preset schedule information, and when it is failed to form a
communication channel, the NFC control module 170 controls a switch 180
to form a communication channel via another short range wireless
communication antenna. In order to do that, the NFC control module 170
controls operation of the switch 180 that converts connection from a
specific short range wireless communication antenna to another short
range wireless communication antenna on a previously defined data
transmission and reception operation cycle basis. Accordingly, the
terminal 100 according to the present exemplary embodiment controls
connection conversion between antennas for a communication connection
attempt on a data transmission and reception operation cycle basis in
which a short range wireless communication module defines and thus
reduces an unnecessary standby time in a communication channel forming
process, and controls to form more reliably communication channel.

[0022] In the present exemplary embodiment, as a short range wireless
communication module, a NFC related module is exemplified, but the
present disclosure is not limited thereto. This is, an NFC related module
of the present exemplary embodiment can be replaced with at least one of
various communication modules that perform data transmission and
reception for converting a communication connection with another short
range wireless communication module based on a specific data transmission
and reception operation cycle. Hereinafter, a structure in which the
antenna module 200 includes two antennas is exemplified, but the present
disclosure is not limited thereto. A detailed description thereof is
described in detail later with reference to the drawings.

[0023] When the terminal 100 supports a long range communication function,
the long range RF unit 110 for can be additionally included, and
otherwise, the long range RF unit 110 can be omitted. In order to support
a communication function of a terminal, the long range RF unit 110 forms
a communication channel with a base station and receives information from
the outside according to a user control or preset schedule information,
or transmits information stored at the terminal 100 or information in
which the terminal 100 collects to the outside. Particularly, the long
range RF unit 110 can transmit information collected through a short
range wireless communication channel formed through the NFC control
module 170 to a specific network device or another terminal according to
user schedule information. Further, the long range RF unit 110 can
transmit information received from the outside to a specific terminal via
a short range wireless communication channel through the NFC control
module 170.

[0024] The input unit 120 generates various input signals necessary for
operating the terminal 100. Such an input unit 120 can be formed as
various input means such as a keyboard, a keypad, and a key button
according to compatibility of the terminal 100. Further, when the display
unit 140 is provided as a touch screen, the input unit 120 can be formed
in a form of a touch map output to a touch screen. Particularly, the
input unit 120 can generate various input signals for forming a short
range wireless communication channel. For example, the input unit 120 can
generate an input signal for selecting a short range wireless
communication channel-based user function, an input signal that instructs
to manually select a specific antenna of a plurality of antennas included
in the antenna module 200, and an input signal that instructs to
automatically select and convert a specific antenna of a plurality of
antennas according to a user control or schedule information. The
generated input signal is output to the controller 160 to be used as a
command for performing a corresponding function.

[0025] The audio processor 130 outputs various audio data that is set in
an operation process of the terminal 100, audio data according to audio
file reproduction stored at the storage unit 150, and audio data received
from the outside. Further, the audio processor 130 performs an audio data
collection function. For this, the audio processor 130 includes a speaker
SPK and a microphone MIC. Particularly, the audio processor 130 outputs
various audio data related to a short range wireless communication
channel operation. For example, the audio processor 130 outputs audio
data for determining whether an antenna selection mode is a manual mode
or an automatic mode in a short range wireless communication channel
forming process, guidance sound according to selection of a manual mode
or an automatic mode, guidance sound notifying formation of a short range
wireless communication channel, and guide sound that instructs data
transmission and reception. An output of audio data or guide sound of the
audio processor 130 can be omitted according to user setting or a
designer's intention.

[0026] The display unit 140 provides various images and videos necessary
for operation of the terminal 100. For example, the display unit 140
provides a standby screen and a menu screen necessary for operation of
the terminal 100. Particularly, the display unit 140 of the present
exemplary embodiment displays a screen related to a short range wireless
communication module operation. This is, the display unit 140 provides a
screen for supporting to select a screen for selecting a user function
related to a short range wireless communication module, a screen for
selecting a manual mode or an automatic mode, and a screen for selecting
a specific antenna of a plurality of antennas according to manual mode
selection. Further, the display unit 140 outputs a screen that attempts
to form a communication channel while converting a plurality of antennas
according to a corresponding short range wireless communication module
data transmission and reception operation cycle according to automatic
mode selection and a screen according to short range wireless
communication channel formation complete. In addition, after a short
range wireless communication channel is formed, the display unit 140
provides a screen for transmitting specific data to another terminal or
receiving specific data from another terminal according to a user control
or preset schedule information. A screen interface provided through the
display unit 140 is described in detail later with reference to the
drawings.

[0027] The storage unit 150 stores data or an application program and
algorithm corresponding to various basic operation systems and various
user functions necessary for operation of the terminal 100. Particularly,
in order to operate a short range wireless communication module of the
present disclosure, the storage unit 150 stores an NFC operation program
151.

[0028] The NFC operation program 151 stores various routines necessary for
a short range wireless communication function operation of the terminal
100. For example, the NFC operation program 151 can include a routine
that provides a user function item related to a short range wireless
communication function to the display unit 140 and a setting function
providing routine that can determine whether to manually or automatically
select a specific antenna of the antenna module 200 when a corresponding
item is selected. Further, the NFC operation program 151 can include a
routine that performs communication with a short range wireless
communication channel based on a specific antenna of the antenna module
200 according to a selected mode and routine that outputs at least a
portion of information transmitted and received according to a
communication result. Here, when the terminal 100 according to one
embodiment of the present disclosure does not support a manual mode that
can select a specific antenna of the antenna module 200, the NFC
operation program 151 does not include a setting function providing a
routine related to a manual mode, and supports only an automatic mode
when a short range wireless communication function is selected.

[0029] The controller 160 controls various message flow control and
information collection and output necessary for operation of the terminal
100 according to one embodiment of the present disclosure. Particularly,
when an input signal for operation the NFC control module 170 is
received, the controller 160 outputs a control signal for operating a
corresponding function to the NFC control module 170. The controller 160
also controls to output various images and videos related to operation of
the NFC control module 170. For example, the controller 160 receives a
signal corresponding to whether to operate a short range wireless
communication function in a manual mode or in an automatic mode from the
input unit 120 or preset schedule information and outputs the signal to
the NFC control module 170.

[0030] The NFC control module 170 controls the switch 180 according to a
signal output from the controller 160 to perform signal radiation and
signal reception for a short range wireless communication function
operation via a specific antenna in the antenna module 200. In more
detail, when the NFC control module 170 receives a manual mode setting
signal and a signal that instructs a specific antenna from the controller
160, the NFC control module 170 controls the switch 180 to select an
antenna corresponding to the signal of the antenna module 200. The NFC
control module 170 stands by transmission and reception of a previously
defined signal based on the selected antenna. When a corresponding signal
is not received for a preset data transmission and reception operation
cycle time, the NFC control module 170 outputs a message thereof, for
example a communication channel forming failure message to the controller
160.

[0031] When a failure message indicating not being able to operate a short
range wireless communication function via a specific antenna is received
in a manual mode state from the NFC control module 170, the controller
160 controls the display unit 140 to output the notification. The user
recognizes that a short range wireless communication function cannot be
operated through a specific antenna designated by the user or preset
schedule information from the above notification, and performs an
additional operation for selecting another antenna.

[0032] When the NFC control module 170 receives a control signal that
instructs to operate an automatic mode-based short range wireless
communication module function from the controller 160, the NFC control
module 170 operates a communication function according to an automatic
mode. This is, the NFC control module 170 selects a specific antenna of
the antenna module 200 according to preset schedule information, and
transmits and receives a signal necessary for a short range wireless
communication function operation based on the selected antenna. In this
case, when a normal signal is transmitted and received in an operation
process via a corresponding antenna, the NFC control module 170 outputs a
notification message thereof to the controller 160.

[0033] When transmission and reception of a signal based on a specific
antenna is not normally performed, the NFC control module 170 outputs a
failure message. For example, when preset data reception for data
transmission defined for communication connection is not performed within
a data transmission and reception operation cycle of a short range
wireless communication module, the NFC control module 170 outputs a
failure message to the controller 160. After a corresponding operation
cycle has elapsed, the NFC control module 170 controls the switch 180 to
automatically select unselected another antenna in the antenna module
200. The NFC control module 170 transmits and receives a specific data
signal through unselected another antenna. Here, when a communication
connection attempt through operation of an individual antenna is failed,
the NFC control module 170 controls to complexly operate antennas, which
is described later in detail with reference to the drawings.

[0034] When a notification message indicating the establishment of a short
range wireless communication is received from the NFC control module 170,
the controller 160 outputs the message to the display unit 140 to notify
normal operation of a short range wireless communication function.
Alternatively, when a specific antenna-based short range wireless
communication by the NFC control module 170 is failed, the controller 160
controls to outputs a failure message corresponding thereto and to
display a message informing that short range wireless communication
channel formation is being attempted using another antenna.

[0035] The antenna module 200 includes a first NFC antenna 201 and a
second NFC antenna 202 connected to the switch 180. As described above,
the antenna module 200 of the one embodiment according to the present
disclosure can be formed with two or more NFC antennas. The first NFC
antenna 201 and the second NFC antenna 202 can be formed in respective
predetermined patterns and can be mounted and disposed in a form such as
a flexible printed circuit board (FPCB) or can be directly disposed at a
specific position of the terminal 100. This is described in detail with
reference to FIG. 2.

[0036] FIG. 2 is a perspective view illustrating a disposition of the
antenna module 200 of the terminal 100 according to an embodiment of the
present disclosure.

[0037] Referring to FIG. 2, the terminal 100 includes a case 60, display
panel 70, touch panel 80, and upper plate glass 90 and can include the
first NFC antenna 201 disposed on or in the vicinity of one side the
touch panel 80, second NFC antenna 202 disposed on or in the vicinity of
one side of the case 60, switch 180 for connecting one of the first NFC
antenna 201 and the second NFC antenna 202, and NFC control module 170
for controlling the switch 180.

[0038] Since a certain portion, for example an upper end portion of the
display panel 70, does not substantially displays information, the
terminal 100 of such a configuration is designed to dispose the first NFC
antenna 201 at one side of the upper end portion of the display panel 70.
Further, in the touch panel 80 for panel operation, since a predetermined
frequency signal is supplied, an interference phenomenon between the
touch panel 80 and the first NFC antenna 201 can occur. Accordingly, by
partially removing a portion in which the first NFC antenna 201 is
disposed in a shape of the touch panel 80, the terminal 100 is designed
to prevent that the touch panel 80 and the first NFC antenna 201 are
substantially overlapped. The second NFC antenna 202 is disposed at a
portion of the inside of the rear case 60 of the display panel 70 and
does not occur interference phenomenon with the touch panel 80. In FIG.
2, the switch 180 and the NFC control module 170 are disposed at separate
space, but the switch 180 and the NFC control module 170 can be
substantially disposed at a predetermined area of a lower portion of the
display panel 70 and the inside of the case 60.

[0039] In the terminal 100 designed to have the above-described structure,
the first NFC antenna 201 is disposed at, for example, an upper end
portion of a front side of the terminal 100, and the second NFC antenna
202 is disposed at, for example, an upper end portion of a rear side of
the terminal 100. Here, the second NFC antenna 202 is disposed at one
side of the case 60 disposed at a rear surface and can be disposed at
various areas on the side intended by a designer, for example at least
one portion of a lower end portion of a rear side or a lateral edge of a
rear side depending on a position in which the first NFC antenna 201 is
disposed as well as an upper end portion of a rear side. Alternatively,
the second NFC antenna 202 can be disposed in a central portion of the
case 60.

[0040] Accordingly, when a user wants to manually operate the second NFC
antenna 202 while operating a short range wireless function of the
terminal 100, the user can determine a disposition of a corresponding
antenna and adaptively operate the second NFC antenna 202 based on the
position operation. In a manual mode to select an NFC antenna of the
terminal 100, it is necessary to determine a position of the antenna and
thus the terminal 100 can provide the information on a screen. This is,
when the user selects a specific short range wireless antenna, the
terminal 100 of the embodiment can notify through an image or a text that
each antenna belonging to the antenna module 200 is disposed at which
position of the terminal 100. Therefore, the user can determine a
position of a short range wireless antenna in which the user manually
indicates using information provided through a corresponding screen and
can adjust a holding method of the terminal 100 or a position of the
terminal 100.

[0041] As described above, because the first NFC antenna 201 is disposed
in an upper end direction of a front surface of the terminal 100, it is
preferable that the first NFC antenna 201 is disposed in a direction
opposite to a disposition direction of another short range wireless
responder that supports a short range wireless function. Similarly,
because the second NFC antenna 202 can be disposed at the center of a
rear surface or an upper end direction of a rear surface of the terminal
100, it is preferable that another short range wireless responder is
disposed opposite to an upper end portion of the rear surface or opposite
to the center of the rear surface.

[0042] Therefore, in a state in which the terminal 100 presently operates
based on the first NFC antenna 201, when another short range wireless
responder is disposed at an upper end portion or at the center of the
rear surface of the terminal 100, it can be difficult to form an
appropriate communication channel. When the terminal 100 of the
embodiment operates in an automatic mode in such a environment, if the
terminal 100 attempts and fails a communication connection based on the
first NFC antenna 201 for a certain number of cycles of data transmission
and reception operation in a short range wireless module, the terminal
100 performs a communication connection by automatically converting a
communication connection based on the second NFC antenna 202. Therefore,
the user can smoothly use a short range wireless function without a
manual antenna manipulation or a search of a failure cause of a
communication connection.

[0043] As the terminal 100 provides a holding method or position of the
terminal 100 in which the user habitually has in a specific short range
wireless function in which the user generally uses through operation of a
manual mode, the user can conveniently use a short range wireless
function without a manual automatic manipulation. This is, for a service
in which the user frequently uses, by using a fixed antenna instead of
unnecessarily switching an antenna, delay according to switch operation
and antenna conversion can be removed.

[0044] In addition, after a manual mode has been operated for a
predetermined time period, when a communication connection is failed for
a predetermined time period, the terminal 100 of the embodiment can be
automatically converted to an automatic mode. This is, the terminal 100
have been operated in a manual mode based on a specific antenna set as a
default, and when a failure occurs, the terminal 100 is converted to an
automatic mode, and thus inconveniency in which the user selects an
automatic mode for short range wireless connection can be solved. For
this, in order for the user to enable to select an item that supports to
convert to an automatic mode after performing a manual mode for a
predetermined time period together with other modes, the terminal 100 can
output the items to the display unit.

[0045] Here, another short range wireless object can be a specific target
for forming an NFC short range wireless channel, such as an antenna of an
NFC short range wireless module mounted in an RFID tag, a reader, or
another terminal.

[0046] FIG. 3 is a high-level block diagram illustrating a configuration
of a terminal for a short range wireless function operation according to
another embodiment of the present disclosure.

[0047] Referring to FIG. 3, the terminal 100 according to the embodiment
includes the NFC control module 170, a first switch 181, a switching
module 182, and the antenna module 200.

[0048] The NFC control module 170 controls the first switch 181 to
automatically convert between the first NFC antenna 201 and the second
NFC antenna 202 in the manual mode or the automatic mode, and attempts a
short range wireless connection.

[0049] Even if both the first NFC antenna 201 and the second NFC antenna
202 are operated, when a communication connection is failed, the NFC
control module 170 of the terminal 100 according to another embodiment of
the present disclosure controls to integrate and operate at least two
antennas of the antenna module 200 included in the terminal 100. For
this, the terminal 100 can further include the switching module 182 for
performing impedance matching and frequency transition while electrically
connecting the first NFC antenna 201 and the second NFC antenna 202.

[0050] Here, in an environment that separately operates the first NFC
antenna 201 and the second NFC antenna 202 through the control of the
first switch 181, the switching module 182 performs a function of
separating the first NFC antenna 201 and the second NFC antenna 202. When
wanting to integrate and operate the first NFC antenna 201 and the second
NFC antenna 202, the switching module 182 performs a function of
electrically connecting two antennas, and the terminal 100 can further
include an element for performing impedance matching of antennas.
Further, a frequency performance of an antenna is affected by antenna
length increase by an electrical connection of two antennas and thus the
terminal 100 can further include a filter element for adjusting a
frequency performance of an antenna.

[0051] Further, when the first NFC antenna 201 and the second NFC antenna
202 are connected using the switching module 182, in order to maintain
good communication efficiency, the NFC control module 170 transmits a
communication signal with a relatively higher output than that of an
embodiment in which either one antenna operates. Therefore, in the
terminal 100 of the present exemplary embodiment, by integrating and
operating the first NFC antenna 201 and the second NFC antenna 202,
damage occurs, but a better signal environment can be provided through,
for example, additional power supply and a disposition of additional
elements.

[0052] When a short range wireless communication module is an NFC module,
a cycle for one data transmission and reception operation can be 333
milliseconds, and thus an operation cycle of the switch 180 or the first
switch 181 can be a unit of 333 milliseconds. Therefore, the terminal 100
performs a signal processing for determining whether short range wireless
antennas included in the antenna module 200 can communicate with another
short range wireless module in an operation cycle unit of 333
milliseconds or in an operation cycle unit of the predetermined number of
times. In this case, when the number of antennas included in the antenna
module 200 increases, the terminal 100 performs signal transmission and
standby necessary for determining whether communication connection of
more antennas is available according to a corresponding data transmission
and reception operation cycle. For example, when four (4) short range
wireless antennas are disposed, the terminal 100 can perform a signal
processing for determining whether each antenna can perform communication
connection in a unit of 333 milliseconds or in a unit of the integer
times of 333 milliseconds.

[0053] Here, four antennas can be disposed in at least two locations of an
upper end portion of the front surface, a lower end portion of a front
surface, an upper end portion of a rear surface, and a lower end portion
of a rear surface of the terminal 100 and can be disposed in at least one
of an upper end portion and a lower end portion of a side surface
according to a designer's intention. Further, the switching module 182
can be provided in a form that connects at least two of the four antennas
and thus the terminal 100 can control to use an integrated antenna of a
form in which at least two antennas are connected for short range
wireless, as needed. In this case, the terminal 100 can supply requested
additional power according to the increased antenna number, and a
designer can perform an additional design for frequency matching
necessary for forming a short range wireless channel by connecting the
more number of antennas.

[0054] In the foregoing description, for a short range wireless module
operation, a data transmission and reception operation cycle with a unit
of 333 milliseconds has been described, however the present disclosure is
not limited thereto. This is, the terminal 100 controls switching of
antennas according to a data transmission and reception operation cycle
defined in each type of a short range wireless module. For example, in
order to form a channel, when the short range wireless module is designed
to transmit and receive a signal in a unit of 200 milliseconds, the data
transmission and reception operation cycle can be determined in a unit of
200 milliseconds or the integer times of 200 milliseconds.

[0055] In the terminal 100 of the present exemplary embodiment, the same
short range wireless module can be set to have different operation cycles
according to the number of short range wireless antennas included in the
antenna module 200. For example, in the antenna module 200 including 4
short range wireless antennas, the terminal 100 can control a switching
time upon the communication failure for 2N times (N is a positive
integer) of a data transmission and reception operation cycle defined in
a corresponding short range wireless module. In the antenna module 200
including two short range wireless antennas, the terminal 100 can control
the switching time by adjusting the number of N of a data transmission
and reception operation cycle. That is, when the terminal 100 includes
relatively many short range wireless antennas, the terminal 100 can
determine an operation cycle unit switching time in a form that reduces a
delay time, and when the terminal 100 includes relatively few short range
wireless antennas, for reliability security of communication availability
of each antenna, the terminal 100 can determine a switching time in a
form of increasing a communication availability determination time of a
specific antenna. For example, in order to determine communication
connection availability of each antenna, if 333 milliseconds are
allocated to the terminal 100 including 4 short range wireless antennas,
666 milliseconds are allocated to the terminal 100 including two short
range communication connection antennas.

[0056]FIG. 4 is a flowchart illustrating a method of controlling an
antenna of the terminal 100 according to an exemplary embodiment of the
present disclosure.

[0057] Hereinafter, an NFC is illustrated as an example of a short range
wireless module.

[0058] Referring to FIG. 4, in a method of controlling an antenna
according to the present exemplary embodiment, the controller 160 of the
terminal 100 controls to supply power to constituent elements of the
terminal 100 in step 401. Such power supply is performed to constituent
elements necessary for operation of the terminal 100, and particularly,
for a short range wireless function operation, power is supplied to the
storage unit 150, the display unit 140, and the input unit 120.

[0059] When an input signal is input through the input unit 120 or the
display unit 140 of an input function, the controller 160 determines
whether the input signal is an input signal for an NFC module operation
in step 403.

[0060] If the input signal is not an input signal for an NFC module
operation, the controller 160 performs a user function according to a
corresponding input signal in step 405. For example, the controller 160
can perform a communication function, a file search function, a file
reproduction function, a file edition function, a broadcasting reception
function, or a web connection function according to an input signal.

[0061] If the input signal is an input signal for an NFC module operation,
the controller 160 controls to perform an NFC detection process. The NFC
detection process calls the NFC operation program 151 stored at the
storage unit 150 to perform a short range wireless function support and
loads the NFC operation program 151 to the controller 160.

[0062] The controller 160 controls to perform NFC polling corresponding to
data transmission and reception for communication connection in step 407.
For this, the controller 160 outputs a control authority for NFC
detection to the NFC control module 170, and the NFC control module 170
controls to transmit a previously defined detection signal through a
specific antenna according to the control authority and stands by to
receive a response signal to the signal transmitted through a
corresponding antenna.

[0063] The controller 160 determines whether a connection is succeeded
within N polling cycles (N is a positive integer) in step 409. Here, the
N polling cycle can be the previously designated polling number of times
in the NFC detection process. That is, the foregoing description
describes that a polling cycle for NFC detection can be 333 milliseconds,
but the NFC control module 170 can repeat a corresponding polling cycle
several times according to previously defined schedule information.
Accordingly, the controller 160 determines whether a connection is
succeeded through reception of a normal response signal from another
short range wireless communication module within a previously defined N
polling cycle.

[0064] If a connection is not succeeded within N polling cycles, the NFC
control module 170 controls to perform antenna switching in step 413.
Here, an antenna switching process can be one of a switching process of
selecting another antenna other than an antenna that presently attempts a
connection in a plurality of antennas and a switching process of
switching to operate an integrated antenna, as described above.

[0065] After step 413, the process returns to step 407. Such a connection
attempt process can be repeatedly performed by the previously defined
predetermined number of times, or can be repeatedly perform until the
user requests stop.

[0066] If a connection has been succeeded within N polling cycles at step
409, the NFC control module 170 performs a short range wireless function
according to the connection (411).

[0067] The controller 160 provides various screens according to antenna
switching, connection attempt, connection failure, and connection success
of the NFC control module 170 through the display unit 140. This is
described in detail with reference to FIG. 5.

[0068]FIG. 5 illustrates an antenna control related screen interfaces on
a display unit of a terminal according to an exemplary embodiment of the
present disclosure.

[0069] Referring to FIG. 5, when a power supply state is maintained for
use of the terminal 100, the terminal 100 displays a menu related to a
short range wireless function to the display unit 140, as shown on a
screen 501 according to preset schedule information or a user input.
Here, the screen 501 illustrates that a short range wireless function is
an NFC function. For activation of an NFC function, the user can select
an NFC item 51, for example, by a touch action for selecting the NFC item
51.

[0070] Therefore, the terminal 100 outputs a screen allowing to select an
antenna operation mode to the display unit 140, as shown on a screen 503.
The antenna operation menu configured to enable a selection of one mode
of a manual mode and an automatic mode. Here, the terminal 100 can
provide a mode that converts to an automatic mode when a predetermined
period has elapsed after performing a basic manual mode, and in this
case, an item related to a corresponding mode can be further displayed on
the screen 503.

[0071] When the user selects a manual mode on the screen 503, the terminal
100 can provide a screen for selection a specific antenna related to a
manual mode, as shown on a screen 505. The screen 505 can include items
allowing to select one of an integrated antenna and two antennas, i.e., a
front antenna corresponding to the first NFC antenna 201 and a rear
antenna corresponding to the second NFC antenna 202 shown in FIG. 2.

[0072] The user can randomly designate a specific antenna in consideration
of a state in which the user usually holds the terminal 100 or a
disposition of the terminal 100 for a short range wireless function
operation. Therefore, when a short range wireless function operates, the
terminal 100 attempts a communication connection based on a designated
specific antenna and performs processing of a connection or a failure.

[0073] Here, an integrated antenna is an example that simultaneous
connects and operates a front antenna and a rear antenna, as described
above. For integrated antenna operation, the terminal 100 can provide an
element design for impedance matching and frequency transition for
frequency band matching for a determined NFC module operation. Further,
in order to satisfy antenna efficiency provided by previous antennas
based on an increased antenna length, the NFC control module 170 can
supply additional power.

[0074] An element for the impedance matching and frequency transition can
be designed in consideration of various antenna environments such as line
resistance of a line connected to the number of antennas included in the
antenna module 200, a resistance value of a used switch element, and
parasitic capacitance of a switch element. Further, in an additional
power supply process in which the NFC control module 170 performs,
additional power can be supplied based on a condition for obtaining
antenna efficiency obtained when one antenna operates, and additional
power can be supplied to obtain high efficiency corresponding to an
increased antenna length.

[0075] When an automatic mode is selected in a state of the screen 503,
the terminal 100 performs a communication connection for a short range
wireless function operation based on preset schedule information, for
example a front antenna. Accordingly, the terminal 100 outputs a message
notifying that a search function is performing based on a front antenna
to the display unit 140, as shown on a screen 507.

[0076] Thereafter, the terminal 100 performs a front antenna search for N
polling cycles and performs antenna switching on a screen 509 if a front
antenna search for N polling cycles is failed. That is, the terminal 100
switches to release a connection state of the front antenna and to
connect a rear antenna. The terminal 100 attempts a communication
connection using the changed rear antenna, as shown on the screen 509.
Here, when a communication connection succeeds, the terminal 100 outputs
at least one of a pop-up window representing that communication is
connected and a data transmission and reception screen according to
communication connection to the display unit 140, as shown on a screen
511.

[0077] When a communication connection is succeeded using the front
antenna, as shown on the screen 507, the terminal 100 outputs a screen
corresponding to a communication connection success, as shown on a screen
511. Even if both the front antenna and the rear antenna are operated,
when a communication connection is failed, if the terminal 100 performs
an integrated antenna operation mode, the terminal 100 performs an
integrated antenna operation, and in this process, the terminal 100
outputs a corresponding screen. Even if the terminal 100 attempts a
communication connection using antennas included in the antenna module
200, when the communication connection is failed, the terminal 100
outputs a message according to a communication connection failure.

[0078] As described above, in an antenna control system, a terminal
including the same, and a method of controlling an antenna according to
an exemplary embodiment of the present disclosure, when operating a short
range wireless function, by alternately operating a plurality of
antennas, in an antenna environment, a better communication connection
attempt can be performed. Particularly, in a system and method for
controlling an antenna according to the present exemplary embodiment, by
setting a conversion time point of a plurality of antennas according to a
data transmission and reception operation cycle of each short range
wireless function, by saving an unnecessary standby time in an attempt
process for communication connection, an optimal antenna search can be
performed. Further, in a system and method for controlling an antenna
according to the present exemplary embodiment, by operating one of a
manual mode, an automatic mode, and a semiautomatic mode according to a
user selection, an antenna in which a user prefers can be selected and
operated, and a good operation method can be performed. In the present
exemplary embodiment, a communication connection attempt can be maximized
through an integrated antenna operation mode, as needed.

[0079] The terminal 100 can further include various additional modules
according to a providing form. This is, the terminal 100 can further
include constituent elements that do not described in the foregoing
description, such as a short range communication module for short range
wireless communication, an interface for data transmission and reception
by a wired communication method or a wireless communication method of the
terminal 100, an Internet communication module for performing an Internet
function by communicating with an Internet network, and a digital
broadcasting module for performing a digital broadcasting reception and
reproduction function. Further, in the terminal 100 of the present
exemplary embodiment, a specific constituent element can be excluded in
the above constituent elements or the above constituent element can be
replaced with another constituent element according to a providing form.

[0080] Further, the terminal 100 according to an exemplary embodiment of
the present disclosure can include information and communication devices
and multimedia devices such as a portable multimedia player (PMP),
digital broadcasting player, personal digital assistant (PDA), music
player (e.g., MP3 player), mobile game terminal, smart phone, laptop
computer, and hand-held PC as well as mobile communication terminals
operating based on communication protocols corresponding to various
communication systems and application devices thereof.

[0081] As described above, in an antenna control system, a terminal
including the same, and a method of controlling an antenna according to
the present disclosure, various short range wireless communication
connection environment control can be provided to a user, and even if the
user does not control a state change of the terminal according to user
selection, the terminal can automatically perform antenna control for
short range wireless communication channel formation and thus a short
range wireless communication channel can be more reliably formed.

[0082] Although the present disclosure has been described with an
exemplary embodiment, various changes and modifications may be suggested
to one skilled in the art. It is intended that the present disclosure
encompass such changes and modifications as fall within the scope of the
appended claims.

Patent applications by Yongyi Kim, Gyeonggi-Do KR

Patent applications in class Near field (i.e., inductive or capacitive coupling)

Patent applications in all subclasses Near field (i.e., inductive or capacitive coupling)